Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Whoever killed biotech scientist Lawrence Chu was certainly angry about something. This is immediately apparent to NYSPD Lieutenant Eve Dallas when she arrives at the crime scene and sees Chu’s brutally beaten body. The amount of rage it would have taken to do this to another human being means this murder is definitely personal. Yet in spite of all the investigating Eve and her team do into the victim’s life, they can't find a trace of any enemies. Could the clues to Chu’s killer be hidden somewhere at Banner-Wyst, the company he worked for? Robb, the futuristic-crime-fiction alter-ego of best-selling romance writer Nora Roberts, deftly deploys a familiar cast of characters drawn from the rich network of personal and professional relationships Eve has cultivated over the years, and 63 installments in the In Death series, in another dynamically paced, danger-infused plot. Despite being set three decades into the future, this tale is remarkably relevant to today and features a new element in the form of a surprisingly sympathetic antagonist.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Lt. Eve Dallas’ 63rd futuristic case is less a whodunit than a manhunt for an unusually sympathetic killer. Thirteen years ago, way back in 2048, scientific genius Steve Redman—father of the Banner-Wyst corporation’s Rainmaker Project—narrowly escaped death in a gas explosion that killed his pregnant wife and infant son and 200 other residents of their New York City apartment building the night before he planned to report his suspicions about the company to the FBI. Now the bill is coming due for Banner-Wyst. The first death to be discovered is that of Lawrence Chu, Redman’s colleague and trusted friend, whose tenure as director of bioengineering science ends when he’s beaten to death. For quite a while, Dallas and her partner, Det. Delia Peabody, know less about this mystery than their readers do. But when Ezra Dent, a consultant to Banner-Wyst who worked with Redman and Chu back in the day, is murdered in exactly the same ferocious way, Dallas and Peabody, with help from Roarke, Dallas’ tech-billionaire husband, promptly put the pieces together and determine who they’re looking for. The search for Redman, who went AWOL from his hospital bed without a trace six years ago, has its own challenges. So does Dallas’ attempt to get cooperation from partners Calvin Banner and Jacob Wyst, who are clearly in the crosshairs of a killer who seems a lot less monstrous than they are. If the breaks in the case are suspiciously convenient in arriving, readers can pride themselves on taking sides against a mega-corporation whose self-avowed ecological saintliness is undermined by its leaders’ underhanded dealing. A satisfying thriller that will warm the hearts of fans who already take comfort in hating the forces of evil. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Library Journal
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Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her seasoned colleagues at the NYSPD, along with her dashing husband, businessman and police consultant Roarke, are in a race against time to solve a string of brutal murders. The mystery revolves around who is targeting top employees of the bioengineering firm Banner-Wyst and why. The sheer savagery of the victims' beatings makes it difficult to believe only a single assailant was involved, especially given the staff's high-security measures. However, the violent deaths appear isolated to the victims, with their family and friends safe from harm. Dallas's instincts lead her to conclude that these are deeply personal attacks, driven by profound trauma and rage rather than a motive of financial gain. Following a trail of suspicious offshore accounts, Dallas works to unravel a 13-year-old mystery. What she and her team discover is a level of corruption, greed, and evil almost too shocking to believe. VERDICT Readers will be on the edge of their seats with this latest intricately crafted thriller in Robb's bestselling series (following Stolen in Death).—Linsey Milillo